Chimichurri cucumber noodles are fantastic on their own, but when you add creamy avocado, shrimp and hearts of palm, you have a magical summertime dinner recipe. Thank you to the California Avocado Commission for helping me to share this recipe with you.
I will take any excuse I can get to buy fresh flowers for the table. It always seems like such a splurge, but now that we live about a mile away from Trader Joe's, buying a four dollar bouquet of flowers fits well within the budget. Sunflowers seemed like the perfect cheerful summertime addition to my table setting. Have you heard of "Dinner en Blanc" dinner parties, where hosts and guests dress in white and sit down to a fancy meal? Since we're talking California avocados, this meal made the switch to "Dinner en Green".
Out came the green canning jars to hold the sunflowers, paired with green goblets and a green striped table runner. Most importantly, I made "dinner en green"-inspired cucumbers noodles with creamy avocado, seared shrimp and sliced hearts of palm, all tossed with a very green, very tasty chimichurri dressing.
A couple of tricks for this recipe. As with any shrimp recipe, the most important thing is sear the shrimp (hot pan) until just cooked. Overcooking them will render them tough and rubbery. A good rule of thumb is to remove the shrimp from the pan just before you think they are done. The chimichurri dressing is based on the traditional Argentinian sauce, and explodes with the flavor of fresh herbs, garlic and tangy vinegar.
For the cucumber noodles, I used the spiralizer attachment for my KitchenAid mixer. However, there are a couple of countertop spiralizers available that are really good, such as this one.
California avocados are at their peak right now, creamy and flavorful. That's exactly why I've been eating them at every turn - with eggs, on crostini and even in ice cream. Of course, there is nothing better than eating half of a salt-sprinkled avocado with a spoon. That being said, they are the perfect accompaniment for the flavors and textures of these cucumber noodles.
Be sure to serve these cucumber noodles right away, as they tend to accumulate liquid and soften if left to sit for too long. If you would like to prepare most of the recipe ahead of time, cook the shrimp, spiralize the cucumber and add the hearts of palm. Just before serving, add the chopped avocado and toss the noodles with the dressing.
Other healthy avocado recipes:
Roasted Tomato & Avocado Crostini
Vegetable Hand Roll (Temaki) with Avocado Wasabi Yogurt
Printable Recipe
Chimichurri Cucumber Noodles with Shrimp, Avocado & Hearts of Palm
Ingredients
- 10 oz. large raw shrimp, peeled & tails removed
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon ground pepper
- 1 English cucumber 5 cups noodles
- ¾ California avocado peeled & chopped
- 6 ounces hearts of palm sliced
The dressing::
- ½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Place the shrimp in a medium bowl. Toss with the olive oil, salt and pepper.
- Heat a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and cook until just cooked through, about 1 minute per side. Transfer the shrimp to a plate.
- Cut the ends off of the cucumber, and cut the cucumber crosswise into 3 pieces. Run the cucumber through the spiralizer to produce noodles. With kitchen shears cut the noodles into slightly smaller pieces.
- In a serving bowl, combine the cucumber noodles, shrimp, avocado and hearts of palm. Toss with the dressing. Serve immediately.
- The dressing:
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine all of the dressing ingredients. Process until well combined, scraping down the sides as necessary.
Notes
Nutrition
Disclosure: This post was sponsored by the California Avocado Commission as part of their blogger ambassador program. All opinions are my own. This post contains links to my Amazon affiliate page. Any revenue made from sales through these links helps to support this blog. Thank you!
Michelle | A Latte Food
I love how you spiralized the cucumbers! So, so pretty!
Jenny | Honey and Birch
This sounds delicious! I want to put chimichurri on everything.
Jen @ The Weary Chef
This looks so flavorful! I love cucumber and I can't wait to try this recipe!
Brenda @ a farmgirl's dabbles
I just printed off the recipe, seriously cannot wait to eat this with the perfect avocados sitting on my counter!
Jennifer @ Show Me the Yummy
This sounds so FRESH, Dara! Need this in my life ASAP!
Abeer
I think it's time to bring out my spiralizer again coz this is most likely going to be my lunch tomorrow! 😉
Renee - Kudos Kitchen
Those sunflowers are beautiful and they're a perfect addition to the table with your cucumber noodles and shrimp.
Katerina @ diethood .com
I absolutely love this dish!! Its incredible!
Carolyn
Yup, I love everything about this recipe. Love the cucumber noodles. I need to do that again! And avocado is always a win!
Des @ Life's Ambrosia
I love this! I just made a chimichurri shrimp pasta! Chimichurri so great on anything, this looks wonderful!
Barbara West
That was my question as well. Read and re-read the ingredients and I can see no zucchini any where.
Dara
Barb, please read my response to the comment above. I apologize for the confusion!
Marti Selle
The instructions mention zucchini. Can you use them instead of the cucumbers?
Dara
That was a mis-typing on my part. It should have read "cucumber" and has now been fixed. That being said, zucchini noodles would be great here, too!
Lisa @ Wine & Glue
I love this dinner!! It looks so fresh and inviting! Perfect for summer. And those jars! I have some too, and I LOVE putting sunflowers from TJ's in them 🙂